What happens when your actors go vegan? They need vegan shoes, of course. Find out how the costume designer of ‘Les Miserables’ accommodated vegan Anne Hathaway!

-Lucia Peters

How much thought do you give to your shoes? Our guess is probably a decent amount—variety is the spice of life, after all—but we also bet that you don’t pay nearly as much attention to them as costume designer Paco Delgado did for 19th century French period flick Les Miserables. Paco recently chatted with Footwear News about what went into creating the footwear for the movie—and some of the details might surprise you!

Case in point: Anne Hathaway went vegan after shooting The Dark Knight Rises (she told USA Today, “After I finished the rooftop fight, I ate four slices of pizza and split a bottle of red wine with my guy. I hadn’t eaten like that in months. I felt so ill. By the time the movie finished, I decided to give veganism a try. You can’t go hog-wild as a vegan”), so her shoes in particular required some extra attention. “[Anne’s] vegan, so we couldn’t use any animal materials on the shoes for her character Fantine,” Paco revealed. “We had to find very specific shoemakers to create lace-up boots and ankle boots. We also did flats that were much more sophisticated.”

And what about for the men? In addition to his leather combat boots and rough espadrilles, Hugh Jackman, AKA Jean Valjean, “wanted to wear wooden clogs. It was very difficult to walk in them, but he figured out how to do it.” For Russell Crowe as policeman Javert, “it was all boots.”

Furthermore, due to the fact that the actors sang their parts live on set, a few more adjustments had to be made for their footwear: “[We were] very careful with the materials we used to be as noiseless as possible,” said Paco. “We used soft materials and insoles to stop the noise.” Because nothing ruins the moment like the clump of a huge boot hitting the ground.

Like the idea of vegan shoes yourself? Check out Dansko’s Professional Vegan clogs ($134.95, shop.nordstrom.com). Shadowy black and grey chenille updates a vegan-friendly clog designed for all-day comfort, support, and style—and we promise they’re easier to walk in than Hugh Jackman’s wooden clogs!